Entering its 80th season, the American Hockey League, is perhaps the most notable farm system for the NHL. It's where you see the big time stars develop and grow.. Its fun to watch, and being from the northeast its nice to see a game, but as a Bruins fan and a fan of the NHL in general, wandering into the AHL feels like I'm a man with no country.
You see, I grew up in Western Massachusetts, not too far from AHL headquarters. I was surrounded by ads for the Wolfpack, the Falcons, with other teams not too far away. I went to a college on the southeast coast of Massachusetts, where I would pass by billboards for the Worcester Sharks and be a short drive away from Providence, home of the Bruins affiliate. But I never really cared. They weren't the NHL and I want to see the cream of the crop.
Somewhere that all changed I don't know exactly why. It must have been a series of questions. A co-worker was trying to organize a work related outing to a Springfield Falcons game. I started getting excited, since it was hockey and I thought out of anything it could be really fun and I started to dig deeply into what games we should aim for getting. Springfield? Obviously Hartford should be a goal game, if not that then the Providence Bruins, or the... and so forth.
I began to wonder if the AHL was something I should be getting that excited about, and if its something other people could be getting more excited about. There isn't much out there, so it could be an interesting experiment of sorts. Is the AHL something worth caring about, how do you care for it when your hometown AHL team might be an NHL opponent? Can passion be built around the Semi-Pros as much as it can be for the top players? While the Calder Cup isn't THE CUP, can't winning it be just as deserving of a parade? Can't these games be just as fun?
I will try to see.
The AHL is also going through a lot of changes this year. They changed the divisions, and the teams seem to have spread out more so geographically. A few teams have moved around and affiliations have changed, most notably last years Calder Cup winner, Manchester Monarchs going to the ECHS. It's a very volatile league in that aspect, coupled with the amount of players moving in and out as they go up an down the chain or get traded. Perhaps the recent rash of changes and going into a marquee year is what makes this such a good place to jump in head first.
So, my goals with this blog:
- Provide fan perspective on all AHL teams, although I reserve the right to form biases. (No Hartford, I don't want to like you.)
- Listen to at least one game from every AHL team and provide a recap or commentary on it.
- Comment on AHL news and happenings, scandals and what not.
- Try to help others develop interest in local teams and the AHL.
- Develop my own passion and have fun with this.
My promises are:
- I will deliver my opinions and insight as genuinely as possible. I will try my best to deliver humorous, interesting and inspiring insight into the AHL teams.
- Operate this blog independently from the AHL and AHL influences. (In other words, I'm not the AHL's cheerleader or spokesperson.)
- Provide as much of a complete picture as to the goings on of the AHL that any sane person with a full time job could provide.
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